20+ Customer Service Stats That Show How Experience Influences the Bottom Line

Customer Experience |
May 3, 2019 | 5 mins

Customer service and experience are about more than just making sure your customers have a nice time while they buy. They’re key to building a strong and successful business that drives loyalty and growth.

Whether you need buy-in from management for more customer experience-focused initiatives, or you’re looking for more insights on why customer experience is becoming imperative, we’ve put together a full collection of key service and experience stats grouped by theme. You can read all about it below.

The Incentive to Put Experience First

Experience is a differentiator, and something that customers are actively seeking out from the brands they patronize. If you don’t offer a great experience, your shoppers will go elsewhere. But, if your experience is truly memorable, your customers will actually pay a premium just to buy from you. Investing in top-tier service can have a big positive financial impact.

80% of consumers prioritize experience just as highly as products or services: Salesforce

65% of consumers view quality of service in-store as a key element in deciding where to shop: ICSC

67% of consumers say customer services encourages them to stay longer and spend more money: ICSC

57% of consumers are willing to pay more for an item or service if they know they will receive good customer service. ICSC

73% of consumers say good customer service from a retailer increases the likelihood that they will spend more money than planned. ICSC

Every $1 of investment to improve the customer experience can produce 3X the return: Avanade

56% of customer experience leaders are using data from across channels to understand customer behavior: Calabrio

Experience Pet Peeves and Shortcomings

To get rid of common sticking points in the customer experience, retailers need to think both analytically and creatively. Luckily, there are concrete things you can start doing today to reduce frequent gripes like long phone hold times. Try offering alternative services such as giving customers an opportunity to schedule a more convenient time for a call, or taking the interaction to chat or text. Looking at the bigger picture, it’s crucial for companies to try to reach out to customers on a more personal, 1-1 basis—those that do will succeed.

73% of consumers feel brands have failed to engage them in a personalized way​: ADWEEK

93% of marketers and customer experience leaders believe that delivering a seamless, quality experience is important, but only 45% think that they’re very effective at doing so: Calabrio

Shoppers report that the #1 most annoying part of the customer service process is being put on hold: Clutch

They also report that the #2 and #3 frustrations are rude service and automated phone menus: Clutch

44% of organizations say they offer four or more ways to communicate with customers, however 58% think that customers are only using two or three. Calabrio

Deliver a Great In-Store Experience

While there is a lot of data and plenty of suggestions for optimizing the ecommerce experience, that doesn’t mean the in-store retail experience should be forgotten. Digital advancements are driving new synergies in the world of physical retail, leading to more opportunities to surprise and delight.

83% of shoppers say that quick and easy checkouts are the most important part of a shopping experience: iVend Retail

44% say that self-checkout is a motivator to shop at a particular retailer: iVend Retail

47% of customers took advantage of BOPIS to save on shipping charges. 44% did so to save time: iVend Retail

68% of US shoppers have made multiple BOPIS purchases, and 50% of respondents have decided where to shop online based on whether or not they could pick up in-store: Doddle

41% of consumers said that they used BOPIS services during the holiday season: Doddle

85% of shoppers surveyed said they have made additional in-store purchases while visiting stores to pick up what they already had bought online, with 15% saying they engage in that practice “somewhat frequently.”: Doddle

There are some big themes we can pull out of these data that any experience-focused retailer can apply.

There’s a financial upside to investing in experience. Training associates, filling a call center, and investing in more-connected technologies can be pricey, but research shows that better customer service and a unique, positive experience can buoy profit and easily offset these costs.

Most retailers haven’t cracked CX. There is still plenty of ground to be won in the experience wars. Most brands don’t feel confident that they’re personalizing their experience or understanding their customers to the fullest extent possible. Investing today will mean you can catch up sooner than you might think.

There are likely quick wins you can make for your experience. On the experience front, while there are lots of complex and interconnected aspects you can work to refine, the bottom line is that your customers just really hate waiting on the phone and waiting in line. Solve these relatively straightforward issues first, and watch your company’s star rise.

In-store and digital experiences need to play nicely. Your customers want to buy online and pick up in store, buy in-store and ship home online, check if something is in-stock at their nearest retailer, and speak with associates that know their unique preferences and buying history. These are fast-becoming the table stakes for all retailers. Don’t wait to start tying your online and in-store experience more closely.

The numbers don’t lie: every part of the buying experience should be as frictionless and convenient as you can make them—from browsing to buying to financing. For tips on taking a metrics-based approach to improving your ecommerce experience, check out our guide.